“You can’t count paper ballots.” Want to bet? Virginia Martin, PhD Election Commissioner Columbia County, New York

Note: Every county in NYS hand-counts paper ballots. Just not nearly as many as we do.

Our Modified 100% Hand-Count elections include: Community Participation Fully Secure Paper Ballots Fully Secure Machines, Memory Cards, and Election Management Systems A Quite Robust Hand-Count Audit A Means for Resolving Conflicts Full Access to the Public

Fun Features: Community Participation Encourage people to take part There are many roles Train interested people; let them learn the process

Fun Features: Fully Secure Paper Ballots Always under bipartisan custody Upon public inquiry, a chain of custody that’s fully revealed Full transparency until certification

Fun Features: Fully Secure Machines, Cards, Election Management System Always under bipartisan custody Upon anyone’s inquiry, a chain of custody that’s fully revealed Full transparency until certification

Fun Features: A Robust Hand-Count Audit (think 100%) New to hand counting? Consider randomly (and publicly, with notice) selecting certain contests Counters/staff learn to identify votes the scanner may not count Use the machine’s results

Fun Features: A Means for Resolving Conflicts Candidates/parties need to be able to contest a result before certification

Fun Features: Full Access to the Public Sufficient to know how votes were counted, that ballots were secure The forms used The law, regulations, manuals, handouts, tally sheets

They’re welcome in The Room Where It Happens Compare: No one else is in the room where it happens The room where it happens No one really knows how the game is played The art of the trade How the sausage gets made We just assume that it happens I want to be in the room where it happens

BUT

What if it doesn’t match?

Key Documents Ballot Catcher Instructions Chain of Custody Form Bag Opener Instructions Ballot Accounting Sheet Hand Counter Instructions Tally Sheet Tally Sheet Reconciliation (.xls) Ballot

Only then … Certification Certify the hand-count results AFTER the hand count has been completed Hand-count results may match the machine results